A study published in the May 28 issue of the journal Nature has helped define the potentially significant contribution of permafrost thaw to atmospheric concentrations of carbon, which have already reached unprecedented levels.
In earlier work we estimated that widespread permafrost thaw could potentially release 0.8-1.1 gigatons of carbon per year, said Ted Schuur an ecologist at the University of Florida and the lead author of the study. “Before this study,